Electrical toasters are used in a wide variety of applications ranging from small one or two slice home toasters to larger continuously operating commercial toasters. Such appliances are used to toast sliced bread, rolls, muffins, biscuits, bagels and similar food products. Commercial toasters are used widely in high volume restaurants, for instance.
One type of continuously operating toaster is a conveyor toaster which can continuously move food products seriatim through the appliance. A typical conveyor toaster includes a housing defining at least one toasting cavity. A conveyor defines one side of the cavity for conveying the food products therethrough. A toasting heater platen defines an opposite side of the cavity spaced from the conveyor to sandwich the food products therebetween as the products are conveyed through the cavity.
One of the problems with prior art conveyor toasters centers around the conveyor chain. A typical toaster conveyor includes one or more endless chains which have links or bars interconnected to provide a flexible, continuously movable loop about spaced rollers or pulleys. The links or bars of these conveyor chains are prone to create imprints or depressions on the bread-type food products. This leaves an undesirable aesthetic impression. Consequently, it has been known to cover the conveyor chains with a smooth endless belt which presents a generally flat surface to the food products. Such belts have created considerable problems because they are not easy to remove for cleaning purposes and they are prone to slip or have relative movement in relation to the conveyor chain which they surround. Slippage can cause considerable problems, because the timing in such toasters is very important. If a belt slips relative to the underlying conveyor chain, the food products will be exposed to the toasting heater longer than desired and, in fact, can result in burning the products. The present invention is directed to solving these various problems with a new and improved toaster conveyor covered by a smooth conveyor belt.